George is fascinated by World War Two - bombers, Nazis, doodlebugs. But he discovers the reality is very different from how he had imagined it when a school trip to a World War Two museum leads to a timeslip - and George is in London at the time of the Blitz! He joins up with a group of other homeless children, struggling to survive. And then they suspect someone they know of being a German spy...

About the Author

ROBERT SWINDELLS left school at fifteen to work on a local newspaper. At seventeen, he joined the RAF for three years, then trained and worked as a teacher. Now a full-time writer, he is the author of a number of bestselling titles for the Random House children's list. In 1994 he won the Carnegie Medal for STONE COLD (Hamish Hamilton), a teenage novel about a serial killer. 'Plots which grip the reader from the opening paragraph' THE SUNDAY TIMES 'Robert Swindells writes the kinds of books that are so scary you're afraid to turn the page' YOUNG TELEGRAPH

Prizes

A gripping drama involving a timeslip to the time of London in the Blitz.

Reviews

Gr 8 Up-George, a typical teenager, picks on his sister, hangs out with friends, and terrorizes the old lady across the street by "creeping" across her backyard and destroying a fence. After fixing the fence and giving his friends a hard time for not helping, George becomes excited at the thought of doing a school project on World War II, a subject he loves. On a class field trip to Eden Camp, a museum dedicated to World War II, George reaches for a hand sticking out of fake rubble and ends up sliding through a time slip into 1940's London. He quickly realizes his precarious position, but survives by becoming a member of a gang of orphans hiding in the basement of a bombed out pub. Through his prior knowledge of the history he is actually living and the help of the gang's 14-year-old leader. George lives through air raids at night and spy hunting during the day. Eventually he returns to the present with a new insight into his neighbor's background. Christian Rodska does an excellent job of narrating the novel by British author Robert Swindells, giving each character a distinctive voice. Listeners will appreciate the author's use of short chapters, breaking the story down into scenes much like a play. The use of British slang may be slightly confusing at first for American audiences, but it doesn't interfere with understanding the story. Listeners are given a realistic look at surival in 1940s London and the hardships of living through war. A great addition to upper middle and high school as well as public library collections.-Lisa D. Williams, Chocowinity Middle School, NY Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.